"French & Saunders"

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French & Saunders

Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders emerged out of the boom in Alternative Comedy, appearing as a double act in The Comic Strip live show alongside Rik Mayall & Adrian Edmondson (20th Century Coyote) and Nigel Planer and Peter Richardson (The Outer Limits). After The Comic Strip had its first run on Channel 4 (indeed on the inaugural night of Channel 4), French and Saunders were given their own sketch show by the BBC in 1987.

Written and starring Dawn & Jennifer, they were initially produced (and then produced and directed) by Geoff Posner, and quickly snowballed in popularity, not least for the film parodies, and such classics as the schoolgirls and the little fishes sketch and the over-keen-to-get-on-screen Grandstand background typists. And then there were the Two Fat Men... The theme music was originally provided by Simon Brint and Roland Rivron as a hideously ugly pub combo called “Raw Sex”.

Each show also featured a Special Guest as themselves, such as Alison Moyet, Michael Grade and Roy Castle, something which was deemed daring and radical at the time, but thanks to French & Saunders has now gone on to become a staple source of comic cross-referentiality in modern sketch shows.

French & Saunders

Series 1

Show 1

First Tx 9/3/87 BBC Two 21.00 - 21.30

StarringDawn French
&Jennifer Saunders
 
with
Ken Bishop (Raw SexSimon Brint
Duane Bishop (Raw Sex)Roland Rivron
MadameBetty Marsden
Quick Nose CourierDerek Lyons
withChristine Mackie
Steve Rider
Marcia Tucker
and special guestAlison Moyet
 
Written byDawn French
Jennifer Saunders
 
Produced & directed byGeoff Posner

Show 2

First Tx 16/3/87 BBC Two 21.00 - 21.30

StarringDawn French
&Jennifer Saunders
 
with
Ken Bishop (Raw Sex)Simon Brint
Duane Bishop (Raw Sex)Roland Rivron
withElaine Ford
Jon Glover
Crispin Letts
Christine Mackie
Oscar Quitak
Marcia Tucker
and special guestRoy Castle
 
Written byDawn French
Jennifer Saunders
 
Directed byKevin Bishop (director)
 
Produced byGeoff Posner

Show 3

 First Tx 23/3/87 BBC Two 21.00 - 21.30

StarringDawn French
&Jennifer Saunders
 
with
Ken Bishop (Raw Sex)Simon Brint
Duane Bishop (Raw Sex)Roland Rivron
Cass Allen
Pamela Cundell
Sharron Davies
June Ellis
Hilda Fenemore
Allan Hargreaves
Christine Mackie
Marcia Tucker
and special guestJulie T. Wallace
 
Written byDawn French
Jennifer Saunders
 
Produced & directed byGeoff Posner

Show 4

 First Tx 30/3/87 BBC Two 21.00 - 21.30

StarringDawn French
Jennifer Saunders
 
with
Ken Bishop (Raw Sex)Simon Brint
Duane Bishop (Raw Sex)Roland Rivron
Carmen SingersGordon Christie
Dinah Harris
Angela Hickey
Beryl Korman
Howard Milner
andTerry Bradford
Tom Fahy
Jane Findlay
Richard Lloyd-Morgan
and special guestMichael Grade
 
Written byDawn French
Jennifer Saunders
 
Produced & directed byGeoff Posner

Show 6

StarringDawn French
&Jennifer Saunders
 
with
Ken Bishop (Raw Sex)Simon Brint
Duane Bishop (Raw Sex)Roland Rivron
andChristine Mackie
Harriet Thorpe
Marcia Tucker
and special guestJoan Armatrading
 

Costume Designer
Jacqueline Parry

Make Up Designer
Frances Hannon
Juliette Mayer

Vision Mixer
Heather Gilder
Bill Morton

Graphic Designer
Paul DAuria

Visual Effects Designer
Steve Lucas

Film Editor
Colin Jones

VT Editor
Mykola Pawluk

Camera Supervisor
John Dailley

Sound
Mike Felton
John Mooney
Laurie Taylor

Lighting
Fred Wright

Production Designer
David Laskey
Val Warrender

Production Assistant
Val Wilson

Production Manager
Roy Gould

 
Produced & directed byGeoff Posner

Series 2

Show 1

 First Tx 4/3/88 BBC Two 21.00 - 21.30

StarringDawn French
&Jennifer Saunders
 
with
Ken Bishop (Raw Sex)Simon Brint
Duane Bishop (Raw Sex)Roland Rivron
and special guestsJoan Bakewell
Squeeze
 
Written byDawn French
Jennifer Saunders
 
Produced & directed byGeoff Posner

Show 3

First Tx 18/3/88 BBC Two 21.00 - 21.30 

StarringDawn French
&Jennifer Saunders
 
with
Ken Bishop (Raw Sex)Simon Brint
Duane Bishop (Raw Sex)Roland Rivron
andHelen Lederer
Sue Jones-Davies
Clive Panto
and special guestKirsty McColl
 
Written byDawn French
Jennifer Saunders
 
Produced & directed byGeoff Posner

Show 4

First Tx 25/3/88 BBC Two 21.00 - 21.30

StarringDawn French
&Jennifer Saunders
 
Ken Bishop (Raw Sex)Simon Brint
Duane Bishop (Raw Sex)Roland Rivron
andIan Sears
and special guestBen Elton
 
Written byDawn French
Jennifer Saunders
 
Produced & directed byGeoff Posner

Show 5

 First Tx 8/4/88 BBC Two 21.00 - 21.30

StarringDawn French
&Jennifer Saunders
 
with
Ken Bishop (Raw Sex)Simon Brint
Duane Bishop (Raw Sex)Roland Rivron
Doreena PetherbridgeStephanie Beacham
as herselfSarah Greene
and special guestsThe Proclaimers
Adrian Edmondson
Lenny Henry
 
Written byDawn French
Jennifer Saunders
 
Produced & directed byGeoff Posner

Show 6

First Tx 15/4/88 BBC Two 21.00 - 21.30 

StarringDawn French
&Jennifer Saunders
 
with
Ken Bishop (Raw Sex)Simon Brint
Duane Bishop (Raw Sex)Roland Rivron
andSharon Boyce
Dawn Reddall
Samantha Spencer-Lane
and special guestsRobbie Coltrane
June Whitfield
Lulu
 
Written byDawn French
Jennifer Saunders
 
Produced & directed byGeoff Posner

French & Saunders

Well, French & Saunders have their own official website, and quite right too. Here's the link

As well as tour details, news, archive and all that jazz, it's got links through to where you can get DVDs of all their work.

Or click here to read the BBC comedy guide to French and Saunders


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